'Mutant' satirizes desperate Koreans
Scenes from "Mutant" / Courtesy of Naver
People are waiting expectantly to see the Korean movie “Mutant” -- also known as “Collective Invention”-- because the movie satirizes desperate people in different age groups in modern Korea.
The movie, which opens on Thursday, is about Park Goo (played by Lee Kwang-soo), a financially incompetent man in his 20s whose body turns into a fish after he takes uncertified medicine in a medical test in exchange of money. He receives plenty of publicity after his attention-hungry girlfriend tells the media.
Korean young adults, desperate to find a job in modern Korea, which many now dub “hellish Joseon,” are represented.
Park represents those in their 20s who face an employment crisis after leaving school.
Reporter Sang-won (Lee Chun-hee) represents people in their 30s, many of whom nowadays are left with short-term contract jobs instead of regular, permanent employment.
Park’s father and a lawyer who pretends to fight for human rights, represent people in their 40s and 50s, who are anxious to preserve their dignity in the social hierarchy.
The movie is directed by Kwon Oh-kwang, who wrote “Safe,” the first Korean movie to receive the Palm d’Or for a short film at the Cannes International Film Festival.